Awful negotiator, awful neighbor!

Swaps are great for the big banks until the direction changes and they have to pay out instead of collect in.

Avocados are unique. Author, I wonder if there are any studies as to whether avocados are subject to elasticity of demand? There are quite a few addicts out there. :)

Interesting article. Certainly, though, wages are not doing as well as jobs. That is a big red flag for slowing and possibly a recession at some point down the road. Great that jobs are plentiful, relative to the past. It is a big positive for sure.

Very interesting article. I often wonder if it is better to wait til further slowing emerges before a rate cut, or if the economy should be taken down quickly by raising rates. Because if the Fed lowers rates now, and it does not work, more lowering will be required and there will be no Fed ammunition for the future. It is a gamble to lower rates now, but it would be interesting to see if the Fed alone could stop the slide into recession and for how long, by doing so.

GDP-B looks like a really stupid approach. Measuring free is senseless, because if I go on Facebook and use it for free, then someone is paying advertising to keep Facebook in business. Free keeps nothing in business except for advertising that comes with flipping pages for free. If Facebook books the advertising revenue, that would be counted by GDP. The idea of adding free to that which is already recorded as income is like Bart Simpson having a million shares at zero per share, and counting it to GDP.

Interesting, Moon, that stability seems to be the Fed's goal. And maybe they have it, for awhile. I don't think anyone really knew that all these folks who had given up looking for work would come back to the workforce. Obviously everyone knew they were out there, but no one knew if they really would ever go back to work. Then rents started rising like crazy and many were forced back into the workforce. No one could have predicted that, unless we believe there was a conspiracy to raise rents as a motivating factor. I like conspiracies, but I am not sure if that one can be measured for truthfulness.

Interesting that US debt is growing even with the tax cuts. Seems that companies never learn and look at tax cuts as a means to pile on more debt. That surely was not the intent. Setting companies free from excess debt would increase profits with not adding risk.

As long as US bonds give positive returns, debt is gold. But as with the rest of the world, US bond yields are starting to creep towards zero. That could have a significant impact on the economy, forcing all manner of speculation going forward. We know how that ends.

Price supports were needed, I guess.